1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to multi-port diverter valves which may have a single input flow of fluid and multiple output flows of fluid or in the alternative may have multiple input flows of fluid and a single output fluid flow. More particularly, the present invention concerns a rotary multi-port diverter valve mechanism having a port selector piston member that is linearly moveable within a passage of a rotary diverter member to permit selective positioning of the piston member achieve selective flow to or from a plurality of secondary flow ports and a primary flow port.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Many different types of rotary diverter valves have been developed over the years and are presently used in a wide variety of fluid handling environments. In particular, flow streams from a number of petroleum wells can be conducted through a multi-port valve so that the conditions of each of the flow streams can be measured or collected. U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,196,266 and 7,059,349 present diverting valves of this nature. In the petroleum industry, U.S. Pat. No. 6,648,070 shows an insert valve for use as a choke valve. U.S. Pat. No. 5,316,042 discloses a multi-way valve mechanism.